Lizzie Borden was clearly not fond of her parents, and subsequently has gone down in history for her acts of brutality against them. Note: it wasn’t actually that many ‘whacks’. Borden was acquitted and the case is subject to much debate to this day, could a woman really kill her own parents? I’d like to think she did, possibly just because it’s dramatic and an axe is a pretty bloody way to slaughter your own parents. Plus it makes a far more interesting horror movie and she burnt a dress covered in ‘paint’ just a few days after the killings – cunning! (were people really that naive back then?)

Anyway, as well as public debate, Lizzie inspired non other than a rock band (go figure?), I thought here is as good a time as any to add some much needed hair metal action:

Moving on from that (FYI the band are still going, but they sadly have lost their glam metal essence…)

This year horror veteran, Christina Ricci will be taking on the role of Sunday school teacher turned hatchet-weilding killer, in Lifetime’s exclusive made for TV movie, Lizzie Borden Took An Axe.

I am super excited that we, here in the UK, are now privy to this brilliant channel – home to The Witches of East End! We have no official date for the UK Lifetime channel’s airing… but the movie will be gracing US televisions on January 25.

Thanks to Bloody Disgusting, we can finally see some video footage that is available for our region! Woop! So, here it is!

So we thought of doing a little list of horror set at Christmas… but, that is so boring and overdone… so instead we are going to tell you what we are watching and looking forward to this Christmas…

Tradition: Treevenge

This is a tradition, for approx 4 years now, we have watched this short film EVERY Christmas. If you do nothing else on this list, just check it out… you won’t be disappointed. (not for the faint hearted.. hehehe)

Watching: Black Christmas

Okay, so this is probably the epitome of Christmas horror.

It is arguably, the first slasher film, and it definitely set off the whole sorority girl massacre idea anyway. Except this doesn’t include stupid girls running around half naked, instead featuring intelligent college girls (according to the movies, they don’t exist anymore, at least not within sororities… hmm!?) and tackling a lot of real issues around sexism.

In our humble opinion, the film is actually the most frightening horror film we have ever witnessed. It sends shivers down your spine, even for a hard core horror buff. If you are looking for a real scare, sit down with a cup of hot chocolate, a nice warm fire and this is the perfect fright to snuggle up with a loved one in front of for a truly chilling watch this Christmas!

Listening to: She&Him/Steel Panther

She&Him – Baby It’s Cold Outside

If you didn’t know, Zooey Deschanel sings… and the videos for She&Him, her little duet/band? are brilliant… definitely channeling a psycho/slasher vibe here!

Yeah, we are also listening to Steel Panther, because there is a Steel Panther song for EVERY OCCASION… so if you like your mince pies mixed with a little metal, this one’s for you:

Can’t Wait For: Tusk

Okay, so we don’t know when this is gonna happen, but… Kevin Smith is currently plotting a horror film… we are super excited!

Taken from the name of cheap, serial fiction magazines – think comic books of the 1800’s, the show will entwine the tales of all of our favourite classic literary horror characters including Dracula, Dr Frankenstein and Dorian Gray into a realistic (albeit supernatural) setting of Victorian London… Sound interesting? We think so.

Eva’s character is, according to well-trusted internet encyclopaedia, wikipedia, “a force to be reckoned with”… Ohhh, I say! Here she is in action:

First off, I was very skeptical about the idea of re-making Carrie – was there any need? The original was so brilliantly executed. But what I like about remakes, is that it brings in a whole new generation of fans; something simply re-releasing a film just can’t quite achieve in the same way.

I was very happy to see Kimberley Peirce at the helm, with Hollywood so engrossed by male directors, it feels natural for such a female centric horror film to have a woman’s gaze.

Kick Ass‘s Chloe Moretz was a great choice for the lead – she has the quirky, awkward good looks that lend themself to the character of Carrie. She is also hot off the set of Kick Ass 2, with a feisty role like Hit Girl behind her she can believably do some real damage and attract the viewers. She is a very likeable Carrie, probably more so than Sissy Spacek.

I was excited as soon as I heard Julienne Moore would be taking the role of Carrie’s insane devote mother, as I don’t think there is a role she couldn’t master. Give Moore any vibrant, complex and strong character to work with and she will. Even as Margaret White, she expertly grasps the paradox between loving mother and abusive evangelist, making her both a villain and yet someone to oddly empathise with all at the same time.

The film stayed true to the book, with some changes from the original script yet plenty of satisfying homages to the 1976 feature. Overall, I felt the film really did women in horror a justice – it stood on it’s own against contemporary horror titles, giving newer viewers a good watch, while keeping Carrie fans happy.

Carrie has an appeal that somehow hits both genders: maybe it’s the name of Stephen King behind it, but to me, it proves that men can enjoy a female fronted horror that doesn’t show women running half naked from a killer, empathising and even relating to the tale of a teenage girl. And Carrie really is very female focused – all the villainous incidents are instigated by women, as well as the gestures of kindness. The males only serve as vehicles for the action, plot devices that encourage and/or instigate the women’s actions.

Carrie is a dark tale, it is horrific but not terrifying. This goes for all the incarnations, and this interpretation definitely maintains the chilling factors that make it a classic.

Women are on top in this season of American Horror Story, and I have been dragged in headfirst by its spellbinding premise.

Every episode keeps getting better and better. I will warn you though, this is no Charmed.

Zoe loved her boyfriend, honest.

The beauty of this show is it doesn’t gloss over the horror, it embraces it and aims to shock. These witches cover all bases: they aren’t all beautiful, young, slim (and somewhat undressed). They are a mixture of all races, all sizes and all abilities. Some have powers we’d all love to wield, others have powers that are more akin to a curse.

The show takes horror head-on tackling issues of gender and race. It takes a graphic and unapologetic look at themes of rape, slavery, incest and torture.

Dark fantasy novels have long been a medium where females flourish. With books like True Bloodhitting small screens and receiving emense popularity with both men and women alike, more and more women lead supernatural stories are making the transition from book to film.

Hitting both big and small screens next year are two horror-novels… Now, I am not going to pretend like I have read either of the books they are based on.

Bitten has been sitting in my bookshelf for many years, and sadly I just haven’t got around to taking the time to read it. It’s sat in between a very comprehensive array of female-driven horror novels, I am Legend and two tattered copies of The Bell Jar.

I will, however, be picking up the novel before the tv show hits screens so I can write a comprehensive review of whether the show does the novel justice – let’s hope it does! In the mean time, have a look at the trailer:

Bitten will hit your idiot boxes early next year…

Next up is the film adaptation of young adult paranormal romance series, Vampire Academy. Again, I haven’t read the series (do you have any idea how many paranormal romance series’ there are in the world?!) BUT I am incredibly excited about this. Why? Because the writer is none other than Daniel Waters, who penned the brilliant ’89 black comedy, Heathers, plus it is directed by Dan’s brother and Mean Girls director, Mark Waters. If my novel was going to be adapted by anyone other than myself I would hope it would be these two.